While the holidays come with some of the best meals of the year, you might want to keep your favorite festive plants off the table! Some of the most beautiful holiday greenery can cause a Christmas celebration to take a turn for the worst. And, interestingly, some plants that have a Grinchy reputation are actually quite harmless. Before you bring home some new plants for the holidays, let’s set the record straight about these popular holiday houseplants.
Read MoreOne of the quintessential holiday houseplants is the iconic Christmas cactus. Everyone's grandma had one when they were growing up, and many of us have at least one in our homes now too. While our grandma's plants always seemed to bloom profusely at just the right time for Christmas in Indianapolis, some of us struggle to get our Christmas cactuses to bloom indoors at all.
Read MoreDecorating your front porch to match the seasons is a fun way to add some extra personality to your home, and make your guests feel welcome before they even get inside. You might be wondering how everyone in Indianapolis creates such magazine-worthy seasonal porch decor. Well, almost all of them have a few key features that together create more visual appeal. Here are five guidelines that you can use to pull together a balanced and beautiful fall vignette on your front porch.
Read MoreAphids might be one of the most annoying plant pests around. In the fall and winter, the cold drives them indoors, and we're more likely to find little green or white aphids on indoor plants around the house. Here are our best tips for controlling aphids.
Read MorePlanting bulbs in the fall is one of the easiest ways to bring springtime color to your garden with very little maintenance. Fall is the ideal time to plant spring-blooming bulbs because many of them need to be in a chilly environment through winter to kick off their growing season. If you're looking for flower bulbs to plant in fall, here are our tips for getting you started.
Read MoreRecently, we've noticed more and more people are interested in growing their own food. Since growing yummy vegetables requires a fair bit of care, there's also been an increase in discussions about dirt. If you've tried to grow anything in soil that's hard and compact, or really sandy and dry, you'll understand what we mean. Soil quality is essential for everything you grow, not just vegetables. In general, we're lucky to have pretty high-quality soil in Indianapolis.
Read MoreA while back, we talked about how to create more privacy in your backyard. There are so many options for hedging, whether you want to keep out prying eyes, block out noise, or just to create a quiet backyard escape. In our previous post, we mentioned Boxwood and Arborvitae, two classic and beautiful evergreen hedge options. These are excellent choices for the Indianapolis area, but they don't necessarily fit with the landscaping style of every yard.
Read MoreFall is the perfect time for cozy flannels, pumpkin carving...and lawn chores. While there’s plenty to get done, the fall weather is perfect for working outside. If you’re still struggling to get off the couch, we’ve made it easy to get started with this complete checklist of fall yard cleanup tasks. Make your way through the list and set yourself up for a gorgeous yard in the spring.
Read MoreTackling the weeds in your landscape is a long game. Our long cold winters and short summers seem to make them even tougher here in Indianapolis. The best strategy to win this war is knowledge, persistence, and the right weapons.
Read MoreEvergreens, which in Indianapolis are mainly conifers, are so good at their jobs that they hardly ever get the notice that they deserve. We appreciate them for their steadfast decorative features, but not only are they beautiful additions to our homes, they also add year-round utility.
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